Airtight tobacco pouch



NOV. 29, 1960 T. TowLEs 2,962,070

AIRTIGHT TOBACCO POUCH Filed Feb. 10, 1959 INVENTOR 4 7600745 7'0 wles United States Patent() AIRTIGHI TOBACCO POUCH Thomas Towles, New York, N.Y., assignor to Comoys of London, Inc., NewV York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Feb. 10, 1959, Ser. No. 792,345

2 Claims. (Cl. 150-3) 'Ihe present invention relates to tob-acco pouches, which pouches are used by pipe smokers for carrying tobacco, and more particularly, the invention relates to an improved liner for such pouches providing a substantially perfect airtight enclosure of such nature wherein the mating portions of the liner do not vulcanize or otherwise stick together upon being compressed for any one of many reasons; the invention also prevents particles of tobacco from being trapped between the liner and the outer cover of the pouch.

The recent construction of tobacco pouches includes a rubber or simulated rubber liner secured Within an outer cover of leather or other like material. The liner is Vformed with a mouth at its top end, which mouth is normally provided with coacting beaded edges adapted to close under pressure contact to provide an airtight seal for the tobacco contained in the interior of the liner. The liner is normally joined to the outer leather cover by stitching or similar means. A slide fastener is operatively associated with the mouth portion of the pouch to effect closure of both cover and liner. Travel of the slide fastener from its open position to its close position 'urges the beaded edges of the liner into pressing intimate contact to effect the airtight seal.

In prior art pouches, the beaded edges are -a part of the liner and thus made of the same material. The beaded edges in the pouches of earlier prior art design `are essentially longitudinal or cylindrical-like, solid and confronting semi-circular surfaces adapted for intimate pressing contact. When a smoker carried the pouch in his hip pocket, the beaded edges are compressed under the weight of his body as he remained seated for some time. It was found that the combination of such pressures and body heat, particularly during hot summer days, would cause the beaded edges to vulcanize or otherwise stick together and ruin the tobacco pouch. Persons skilled in the art have attempted to correct this problem by resorting to hollow and air-llled beaded edges to reduce the tendency of the compressed edges from sticking. This arrangement has not proved entirely satisfactory because it reduced the effectiveness of the airtight seal and, moreover, did .not completely eliminate the tendency of the edges from sticking together.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to profvidea liner construction for a tobacco pouch which willnot vulcanize or stick and, simultaneously, maintain a substantially perfect airtight seal.

Itis a further object of the invention to provide beaded edges of serrated ridge construction adapted for mating engagement and of material different than the liner material, wherein material of the beaded edges is so characterized that it does not vulcanize or stick together.

It is a further object of the invention to attach confronting panels of india rubber or other like material to the mouth portion of the pouch liner, which panels are designed for mating engagement under pressure without sticking.

It is a further object of the invention to provide pouch structure wherein particles of tobacco are prevented from falling between the liner and pouch outer cover and by including a web structure Iat one end of the pouch mouth for maintaining the beaded edges thereunder in engaged pressure contact while the slide fastener is in open position.

Further objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description of the invention taken in conjunction with the gures, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a tobacco pouch incorporating the principles of the invention wherein portions of the pouch are cutaway and in section to illustrate certain details of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional View of the upper portion of the tobacco pouch taken yalong line 2-2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the pouch taken along line 3-3 of Fig. l; and y Fig. 4 is a fragmentary cutaway View in perspective of the pouch illustrating certain of the features of the invention.

The gures illustrate a pouch 10 made in -accordance with, the invention. Pouch 10 includes an outer cover 11 and antinner liner 12 mounted within cover 11. Outer cover 11 is made of leather or other suitable material and as known in the art is stitched along its peripheral bottom `and left and right sides to form a single unit with a mouth or lengthwise opening M at its top side. Mouth M includes ya pair of confronting lengthwise panels of cloth material 13g, 13b fastened by lengthwise stitching 14 to` individual ones of the confronting interior walls of cover 11. Panels 13a, 13b coextend the length of mouth M of cover 11 rand have on the upper edges thereof complementary engaging slide fastener members 15, 16 for a slide fastener operator 17. In the illustrated embodiment, Fig. l shows operator 17 in its closed position, i. e., the position wherein mouthV M o-f pouch 10 is closed. When operator 17 is pulled to its other end position, mouth M is open. Hereinafter, the first position for operator 17 will be called its closed end; the latter position willrbre referred to as its open end. Y Y

Liner 12 is made of rubber or suitable plastic material, and is fully enclosed except for its lengthwise slit at its top side for mouth M. Liner 12 has depth 'and lengthwise dimensions less than cover 11 and is stitched to the body of said cover along stitch line 18, which stitch starts at A (Fig. l) on one wall of cover 11 and runs to B at the left peripheral side and then Ialong the back wall of cover 11 tota point substantially directly underneath point A. Point A is close to the right peripheral side of cover 11. Stitch line 18 is below stitch line 14 so that the upper portions of cover 11, the cloth panels 13a, 13b attached thereto and, moreover, the coextending upperl portions of liner 12 above stitch line 18 are free for open and closing coaction upon use of operator 17,

InA accordance with the practice of this invention, a pair of lengthwise panels 19 of solid rubber like material are cemented or otherwise attached to individual ones of the opposed interior walls ofrliner 12,. Panels 19 coextend the lengthwise, dimension ofthe interior walls of liner 12 with the lower edges of said panels terminating about the horizontal plane of stitch line 18 whereby panels 19 are free for open and close coacting movement upon use of operator 17. The upper edges of panels 19 terminate in horizontal coplanar relation with the upper edges of cover 11 and liner 12. The confronting surfaces of panels 19 have serrated ridges 25 adaptable for mating engagement upon closure of operator 17 to provide a su-bstantially perfect airtight seal so that the tobacco in pouch 10 is maintained in fresh condition. The serrated ridge design provides a large area of intimate mating contact when panels 19 are closed. The area of contact is equivalent to the lengthwise dimension of the panels and the linear distance in depth along the zig-zag line C, Fig. 2. In lengthwise dimension, panels 19 extend between the upright left-hand and right-hand sides of liner 12.

In accordance with the practice of the invention, panels 19 are made of india rubber or like material, such as a lightly vulcanized natural rubber, which may include a carbon black filler whereby panels 19 are characterized by flexibility and a lack of tackiness to prevent the mating ridge surfaces thereof from vulcanizing or otherwise stick ing together under any adverse `condition when brought under intimate pressure contact by reason of closure of operator 17.

A web 20 is provided `at the closed end of mouth M. Web 20 is made preferablyof the same material as cover 11 and consists essentially of a strip of leather, the sides of which are tucked between cover 11 and the outer walls of liner 12. Web 20 is folded over at one end 21 and held in place by stitching 14. 'Ihe center portion 22 of web 20 bridges mouth M, which center portion extends lengthwise from the left-hand side of pouch a short distance to maintain a like length of panels 19 permanently in mating engagement when slide Operator 17 is withdrawn from its closed end. Operator 17 is not shown in Fig. 4 in order to illustrate the details of the upper left edge of the pouch. A slight clearance 23 is provided between web and the joined panels 13a, 13b into which operator 17 may project when drawn to its closed end to prevent tearing of web 20. The complementary members 1S, 16 at the open end of mouth M are permanently joined by a metallic web 24 spaced inwardly from the right-hand side of pouch 10, whereby the ends of panels 19 thereunder are maintained in permanent mating engagement. The foregoing structure will prevent tobacco particles from falling between outer cover 11 and liner 12 during use of pouch 10 since it is only at the top side corners that spaces may exist through which tobacco can drop.

It is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. A tobacco pouch comprising, a cover of flexible material having confronting front and back walls joined at their bottom, left and right peripheral sides to form a unitary pouch cover having a lengthwise open top side defining a pouch mouth, a movable operator at said open top side for opening and closing said mouth, movement of said operator lengthwise to one end of said mouth adjacent one peripheral side of said cover effects closure of said mouth and movement of said operator lengthwise to the other end of said mouth adjacent the other peripheral side of said cover effects opening of said mouth, a liner of flexible and substantially airtight material and being completely enclosed except for a lengthwise open mouth at its top side, said liner being supported within and attached to said cover along a horizontal stitch line spaced below the top edge of said pouch mouth to allow opening and closing movement of the opposed walls of said liner and cover above said stitch line, a pair of solid panels coextending the lengthwise dimension Vof said liner and having confronting coacting surfaces adapted for mating engagement, each panel being attached to an individual one of opposed inner wall surfaces of said liner above the horizontal stitch line to permit mating engagement of the confronting panel surfaces, said panels being made of india rubber whereby the mating surfaces thereof do not stick together upon being subjected to contact pressures, and a web at said one end of the mouth occupied by said operator when said mouth is closed, said web having a center portion bridging said pouch mouth and also having side walls depending from said center pox"- tion and attached to said outer cover, said web extending lengthwise a short distance from the adjacent peripheral side of said cover, whereby a like length of the confronting surfaces of said panels underneath the center portion of said web are permanently in mating engagement regardless of the position of the operator.

2. A tobacco pouch comprising, a cover of flexible material having confronting front and back walls joined at their bottom, left and right peripheral sides to form a unitary pouch cover having a lengthwise Open top side detining a pouch mouth, a movable operator at Said open top side for opening and closing said mouth, movement of said operator lengthwise to one end of said mouth adjacent one peripheral side of said cover effects closure of said mouth and movement of said operator lengthwise to the other end of said mouth adjacent the other peripheral side of said cover effects opening of said mouth, a liner of flexible and substantially airtight material and being completely enclosed except for a lengthwise open mouth at its top side, said liner being supported Within and attached to said cover along a horizontal stitch line spaced below the top edge of said pouch mouth to allow opening and closing movement of the opposed walls of said liner and cover above said stitch linea `pair of Solid panels coextending the lengthwise dimension` of `said liner` and having confronting coacting surfaces adapted for mating engagement, each panel being attached to `an individual one of opposed inner wall -surfaces of said liner above the horizontal stitch line to `permit mating engagement ofthe confronting panel surfaces, said panels being made of lightly vulcanized natural rubber whereby the mating surfaces thereof do not stick together upon being subjected to contact pressures, the confrontingsurfaces of said panels have serrated ridges adapted for interlocking mating contact upon closure ofthe `pouch mouth, anda web at said one end of the mouth occupied by said operator when said mouth is closed, said web having a center portion bridging said pouch mouth and also having side walls depending from said center portion and attached to said outer cover, said web extending lengthwise` a short distance from the adjacent peripheral sideof said cover, whereby a like lengthof the confronting surfaces of said panels underneath the center portion of said web are permanently in mating engagement regardless of the position of the operator.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,107,216 Rogers Feb. .1, `19938 2,236,024 Tyler Mar. 25, V1941 2,500,363 Koeppel Mar. 14, 1950 2,520,467 Merralls Apr. 29, 1,950 2,779,370 Wittenberg Jan. 29, 19,57 

